Old Lives Revisited
by Banshi13
Summary: Launchpad arranges a weekend get away for Drake and Gosalyn to Duckburg! Fun, drama, and even a bit of romance ensues...this story is finished, please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

"This is so great, Launchpad!"

Gosalyn Mallard lugged her suitcase down the stairs, which was full enough to last for a week of traveling, though they would only be gone for the weekend. Though Gosalyn was normally a tomboy and only needed a couple of shirts, she was also known for getting into mess's and stirring up dirty trouble. Therefore, a couple extra changes of clothing wasn't too far out of line. "Will Mr. McDuck be there when we arrive, or do we have to wait for him to fly in?"

"Ah, no, Gos, he'll be there. He's been planning this for the past month. In fact, the entire McDuck clan has been waiting for this for a while," Launchpad explained, throwing his own luggage into the hallway and crossing his arms triumphantly. "Now all we have to do is wait for your dad to get done packing, and we can get out of here."

"I can't believe it, a whole weekend in Duckburg," Gosalyn hopped up the stairs with glee, "DAD! We've gotta leave soon if we're going to beat the traffic!" She trotted down the hallway to her fathers bedroom and stopped abruptly in the door way. Her father was apparently having a bit of trouble getting his suitcase closed, as he was, at this very moment, sitting on top of it, jumping up and down trying to latch the snaps together.

"Oh you gotta be kidding me," she grumbled as she walked into the room, a hand over her shaking head, "Dad, what do you have in there? Every piece of clothing you've ever bought in the past 35 years?"

"Nooooo," Drake growled, still hopping up and down on the suitcase, "this is the smallest suitcase I own, Gosalyn, I needed to conserve space in the car so that we actually have room to breath." He stood up, stepped on top of the suitcase, and now he was jumping up and down like mad.

"Dad?"

"What!" he managed to get out.

"Pick a bigger suitcase. We'll manage." She stepped over to the bed, and as her father was jumping up, she pulled the piece of luggage out from underneath him. Her father fell unceremoniously onto the bed and grasped the comforter to keep from falling. "Gosalyn, if you ever do that again..."

"Oh, boo hoo...you've been through worse," she mumbled back, rooting through his closet to find a slightly bigger suitcase to stuff all of his clothes in. "Here we go, right here. This is perfect." She set to taking everything out of her fathers small suitcase and putting it into the larger one, and within five minutes had the luggage downstairs, and was impatiently tapping her foot.

"Daaaad! Come on, we're gonna be late!"

"Late for what? What time are the expecting us?"

"Before dinner, DW," Launchpad answered, "and if we want to make it, we better leave in the next ten minutes."

"Oh, alright, alright...just let me make sure everything's locked up."

After the last bit of security check ups were done, Launchpad, Gosalyn, and Drake were all in the car and headed out of the city towards Duckburg, known as one of the wealthiest and best places to live on the planet. The city was about an hour and a half away, and the trio enjoyed the ride by listening to cd's, playing car trip games, and in general talking about life in general. Surprisingly, Darkwing Duck, F.O.W.L., or the Fearsome Five never entered into the conversation. That was a good thing, particularly considering that they wouldn't be allowed to discuss details like that during their weekend get away.

Around 5pm, the car turned into a rather long and large driveway leading up to a grand mansion. Gosalyn's eyes nearly bugged out of her head. She'd heard Launchpad discuss his services to Mr. McDuck before, and she'd also heard of how wealthy he was, but it was still amazing to look at.the mansion. It was beautiful. All brick, huge french doors, the circumference of the yard was about the size of a football field, and Gosalyn could only think of the number of football and soccer games she could have on that ground.

The car pulled up to the door and a butler ("My God, Dad, they have a _butler_") was immediately at the passenger side door. Once the car had stopped, the butler opened the door.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Mallard," he greeted, "if you'll step outside, I'll attend to your luggage."

"Er...thank you," Drake responded, looking over to Launchpad. The pilot didn't seem phased by it; he was already out of the car and walking around to help the butler. "Duckworth, it's great to see you again. You're looking great! The kids keeping you busy?"

"Ah, Mr. Launchpad, Sir," Duckworth greeted as he opened up Gosalyn's door, "I am doing well and it is good to see you again. The children, along with Mrs. Beakley and Mr. McDuck are waiting for you in the living room." He closed the car door and nodded at both Gosalyn and Drake. "You are free to follow. Your bags will be put in your room during dinner."

"Oh, well, it's okay, we can get them ourselves," Gosalyn answered, "I mean...I'm sure you've got better things to do than to carry our suitcases up the stairs, right?"

Duckworth just looked at her. "I confess, I do not, young miss."

"Oh." A red tinge dusted her cheeks and she looked at Launchpad, who shook his head at her, smiling. "Don't worry about it Gosalyn. You'll have plenty of time to get ole Duckworth out of his duties over the weekend. If the triplets are anything like they were, when they were little-"

"LAUNCHPAD!"

Three identical looking teenaged boys flew out of the open doors of the mansion and down the steps, tackling Launchpad to the ground. Drake and Gosalyn barely had time to get out of the way.

"Welcome back, Launchpad!"

"How was St. Canard?"

"We've missed you so much!"

Launchpad was a jumble of limbs and boys, and when he finally managed to sit up, it was clear to his two friends that he had left a part of his heart here in Duckburg. After greeting all three of the boys, shaking their hands, and giving them hugs, Launchpad turned one of the boys to face Drake and Gosalyn. Though they weren't so impressed with the obvious father figurer, they were quite impressed with the same aged girl that was standing in front of them.

"Guys, this is Drake Mallard, and his daughter, Gosalyn. We work together in St. Canard," Launchpad informed them, "and guys, this is Huey, Dewy, and Louie...normally, you'd be able to tell them apart by the color clothing they wear, but I guess they're a little old for that, huh?"

The one named Louie stepped up to Gosalyn and held out a hand. "It's nice to meet you. For the entire month, Launchpad has always mentioned you guys on the phone."

"Yea, he hasn't been able to stop talking about coming here either," she replied, firmly grasping Louie's hand. He was a little taken aback by the strength.

"Wow...firm grip," he muttered, flexing his fingers and turning to his brothers, grinning at Dewy. His brother had become quite the shy one these days. They were in their freshman year of high school, and although they were popular and well liked, especially by the girls, Dewy had more of a problem handling it all than either Louie or Hewy. Hewy was, by far, the duck the ladies all loved. He had a bit of a bad boy image mixed with chivalry and charm. Louie was the sports fanatic, was one the basketball, football, and soccer teams, and also had the good grades.

"Ah, well, I see you've all gotten acquainted once again...though ya've been forgettin' one li'l thing." Everyone turned to see a short, obviously Scottish duck standing at the stop of the concrete stairs in front of the doors, a cane in front of him, both hands leaning on it. Launchpad made his way up the stairs and held out a hand. "Mr. McDuck, it's so good to see you again. Thanks for opening the house to us." Scrooge 'pashawed' and shook the hand of his old employee. "Think nothin' of it, lad, nothin' of it at all." He eyed Drake and Gosalyn. "Now...which one is which here...I'd say the pretty red head would be this Gosalyn you've been telling me about," he made his way down the stairs and sized Gosalyn up, which she could tell he was doing. Normally when anyone did that, Gosalyn would give them the most menacing glare that she could muster, however, she actually felt slightly hopeful that he found nothing wrong with her. "Tell me, m'dear, are ya into sports?"

"Oh uh...well, yea, I mean...soccer, hockey, baseball..." she rattled them off, "I'm into all of them, pretty much."

"Aye, and I take it you can be a bit of a rascal, yes?"

She blushed and nodded. Scrooge turned to his nephews. "Louie, Hewy, she's going to give you both a run for your money. I can tell." He stepped to the side and held out a hand to Drake. "And you must be her father. Scrooge McDuck. I'm glad someone was able to help Launchpad in St. Canard. He's spoken very highly of you. Know that you're welcome here anytime, Mr. Mallard, and your daughter as well."

"Well now!" Scrooge turned from them and began to head back up to the door, "I know that you all must be hungry, so, dinner is bein' served by Mrs. Beakley. Boy's, you'd better get inside and wash up. Launchpad, why don't you show our guests where the restroom's are, and they can do the same, hmmm?"

"Yea, come on guys. Gos, you're gonna love the backyard," Launchpad told her, ushering everyone into the house, "although, I gotta say I'm surprised Webby wasn't out there..."

"Heya Launchpad!"

While the triplets headed down the hallway to the restrooms, Launchpad halted at the familiar voice. "There she is," he announced, looking at the top of the stairs. His eyes nearly bugged right out of his head. "Good grief, Webby, is that really you?" A bouncy girl in a pink tank top and white slacks vaulted down the stairs and leapt, just as the nephew's had, right into Launchpad, though this time, the pilot was able to catch the pitch. Gosalyn and Drake had a hard time understanding what this Webby was saying, but they concluded that she was extremely happy to see Launchpad. "Oh my gosh, I can't believe you're really here...oh, and you brought friends, I didn't know you were bringing guests." She immediately turned her attention to them and held out a hand. "I'm Webbigail Vanderquack. I'm guessing you're friends of Launchpad's from St. Canard?"

"Uh...yea, he and my dad are co-workers," Gosalyn answered, shaking Webby's hand, "it's nice to meet you, Webbigail."

"Oh please, call me Webby! Webbigail is such a mouth full, don't you think?" She shook Drakes hand.

"Webby, this is Drake and Gosalyn Mallard. Gosalyn is Drakes daughter...and...yea, Drake and I work together back in St. Canard."

"Oh, Webby, don't pester the guests, they must be tired from their drive," Mrs. Beakley was walking down the hallway, an apron wrapped around her. She graced Launchpad with a smile and gave him a big hug. "Launchpad, we've missed you around here. Now, come, come all of you, the foods ready to be eaten, and we all have so many new things to talk about. Come all of you, Webby, why don't you show Mr. and Ms. Mallard where they can wash up?

_Old Lives Revisited_

The dinner was probably the biggest Gosalyn had ever seen in her life. A huge turkey with mashed potato's, cinnamon apples, green beans, corn on the cob, and baby corn, along with stuffing, gravy, and biscuits covered the table. With Scrooge McDuck, Mrs. Beakley and her granddaughter Webby, the three boys, Launchpad, Drake, and Gosalyn, the meal went quickly, but there was still plenty of food left over to make sandwiches and have lunch tomorrow.

"Mrs. Beakley, I've got to say, that was probably one of your personal bests," Launchpad commented, patting his very full stomach. Gosalyn nodded enthusiastically. "Yea...it beats dad burning down the kitchen every night."

"Gosalyn!"

"Oh, think of nothin' of it dear. I love cooking for a big group, especially on such a wonderful occasion," Mrs. Beakley got up and began clearing the table. "Now, why don't you all go into the den and get acquainted? I'll grab Duckworth and we'll finish tidying up in here."

"Are you sure you wouldn't like any help, Mrs. Beakley?" Drake asked, already rising from his chair and picking up his plate. "Oh, don't be silly. After that car ride in the heat? No, no, no, take yourself along with your daughter and Launchpad into the den and relax with the kids and Mr. McDuck." She took the plate from him and shooed him away. The rest of the family took that cue to leave the dining room, Drake saying to Launchpad along the way, "I feel kinda bad for not helping her. That's a lot of work to cook all that food and then clean it up."

"Yea, but you don't know Mrs. Beakley like we do," his sidekick informed him, "she has a certain way of doing things and making sure that everything is taken care of. She'd rather do it by herself and let everyone else have all the fun. It's her way of taking care of her family."

When they were all settled in the den, an after dinner drink in Mr. McDuck's hand, they began discussion's about who they were, what they did. Eventually, the conversation became chopped up, Launchpad, Drake, and Mr. McDuck discussing business and careers, and the kids becoming rather bored sitting in a house, and knowing that there was a huge yard outside to play in.

"Gosalyn, you said you played soccer?" Louie asked to which the girl emphatically nodded her head. "Then let me grab a ball and you and I will kick around a few."

"Sounds great. Anybody else wanna join?"

"I'll sit out there with you guys, but I'll be working on my laptop," Dewey answered. Webby too, was also shying away from the sports. "Yea, I think I'll stay with Dewey...I don't know how to play soccer that well."

"Oh, well, I can teach you, it's really simple...though if you wanna learn, you'd better change out of that outfit," Gosalyn warned. With a looked to Louie, who nodded, Webby decided to try out the sport and went upstairs to change into something a bit more appropriate.

"Huey, you wanna play with us?" Louie asked his brother.

"What, soccer?"

Both Gosalyn and Louie nodded. Huey shook his head. "Nah, I'm gonna grab one of my comic books and read up stairs before I go to bed." At comic books, Gosalyn perked up. "What comic are you on?"

"Oh...uh, it's _Slugzilla and the Serpent's Sting_...it's new, just came out, but no one really reads that verse-"

"_I_ read that verse, I just got done with the comic before hand!" Gosalyn stood up excitedly, "How's this one? Is it better than the first? Please, say it's better than the first, I've been waiting for six months for it to come out!"

"Well...I don't wanna give anything away, but if you want, after you're done playing soccer, you can come grab the comic from me and read it. I'll be done with it by then, guaranteed!"

"Alright, no problem."

Webby, at this moment, jumped back into the den. "How's this?" She'd replaced her girlish outfit with black sweat pants and a white tank top, with black sneakers. Both Gosalyn and Louie nodded their heads. "Perfect, Webster," Louie complimented. "Come on guys! All who's playing or watching head out to the back yard!"

_Old Lives Revisited_

"Geez," Louie panted, wiping his brow, "how long of you playing, Gosalyn?"

"Oh...about since I was nine I guess...I've always been into sports, so I've played I guess since I could walk."

"No kidding, it shows," Louie rolled the ball over his foot and passed it to Webby. Though the 13 year old had trouble at first controlling the ball, she was now able to stop, control, and then kick it with veritable ease. Louie and Gosalyn had squared off with each other more than once, and Webby had eagerly watched, noticing all the tricks that they'd done with their feet to keep the ball in their respective possessions.

"I don't understand how you make your feet move like that," she shook her head, coming into the circle.

"Well, I don't get how you make your hips totally switch joints the way you do in ballet but..." Louie shrugged.

"You take ballet?" Gosalyn asked, passing the ball to Louie, who in turn passed it to Webby. She had to chase the ball a bit because it was more of an onside kick than a pass, but managed to get it back under control once more, "yea, since I was six. Grandma though it would be a good idea for me to have some physical work out in my life. I love it though. I want to go to the Calisota University of Dance after I'm done with High School." They called it a night and began walking back to the house.

"Hey Dewey, what'cha workin' on?" Louie asked his brother, carrying the soccer ball underneath one arm.

"I'm trying to figure out a way to reroute the security system sensors from the house via a chip that I recently installed into my laptop. This way, if something happens in the house and we can't get to the security room, I'll have my laptop with me, like always, and we can hack into it from there."

"Keen gear," Gosalyn nodded. Louie just looked at her. "You actually understood what he just said?"

"Well, I got the gist of it. My dad works with computers a lot and my grandfather was a scientist," she supplied. That was about all the information she could supply at the moment. She couldn't exactly tell Louie Duck 'yea, my dad's a famous crime fighter back in St. Canard and uses all kinds of equipment to find criminals.'

"Cool. Well, I'm gonna head inside and somethin' to eat. Playing really gave me an appetite."

"Oh Louie," Webby sniffed at him, "all it takes is talking to give _you_ and appetite."

Louie didn't have a response, so he merely stuck his tongue out at her and moved inside. "Hey Gosalyn you want to go for a walk or something? I could show the grounds..."

"Uhmm..."

"Oh don't worry about Huey, he'll be up until about 4am...that's the _earliest_ he goes to bed ever." For being so young, Webby was certainly an observant young lady. Gosalyn therefore acquiesced and joined Webby for a walk around the grounds.

"Let's see...if you head down that trail, there's a lake that we all go swimming in when it's hot. If you want, we can all go there tomorrow. I hope you brought your bathing suit."

"Yea, Launchpad told me about the pool...I didn't know about the lake though. That would be cool. I haven't been swimming in a lake for a while." They stayed quiet for a bit, but Gosalyn's curiosity got the better of her.

"So, you mentioned your Grandmother...what about your parents, where are they?"

Webby shrugged and tucked a lock of white feathered hair behind an ear. "I don't know. I've never known who my parents are and Grandma Beakley hasn't told me. There was one time when I asked about it, but she just got this sad look on her face and asked me never to think on it again."

"I dunno," she continued, "I want to know who they are, but at the same time, I know I'm never going to. The look on Grandma's face kinda told me that there wasn't any way that I could see them...ever." Her demeanor quickly changed once more, to that of the happy, giggling girl Gosalyn had met. "But it doesn't matter. I have her and my cousins, and Uncle Scrooge. That's all I need, I can't imagine living anywhere else."

"What about you? Where's your mother?" she asked.

"Oh uh...heh, I guess I'm kinda like you," Gosalyn explained, "see, my dad's not my real dad...he adopted me when I was nine after my Grandpa died. As far as I know, he was the last living member of my family. I don't know who my parents were either...I don't know if they're alive or dead, if they know I exist or anything like that..." she shrugged, "it's no big deal really. I kinda look at it like you do. I love my dad, and I love Launchpad, and I can't imagine having a better family than that, you know?"

The girls walked around a little more, and each began to feel a special bond forming between them. They both had similar histories, and while they'd each grown up in different atmosphere's, there was a lot to be said for the similarities the girls shared. They both knew that it could be worse and were very grateful for what they had at present. They made their way around the yard, Webby pointing out various things of interest and with some giving the stories behind them. Eventually, they had circled the perimeter and were back where the had started, at the bottom of the large deck.

"Well, you should probably get back inside and make sure Huey's done reading that comic," Webby said, walking up the steps, Gosalyn following behind. "It's really cool that you're here, Gosalyn. Anytime Launchpad phones he always talks about you and your dad."

"Yea, I've heard some stories about you guys too...I'm real excited to be here," the red head reaffirmed, walking into the house behind Webby. "Well, that's good. Anyways, I'm going to head to bed. You know where your room is right?" Gosalyn nodded. "Cool then. Well, sleep tight. Huey's room is on the third floor. When you go up the stairs it'll be the second room on the left...it's kinda hard to miss." Gosalyn snorted, following Webby up the stairs. As the younger duck got off at the second floor, Gosalyn continued on to the third. Her room was right down the hall from Hewy's, the last one on the right, and her father was directly across from her. Launchpad had taken up his old room on the first floor. Stopping in front of Hewy's closed door, she got the feeling that she was going to be right at home in this room. The door was very much like her own. Signs stating 'Studying-offerings of food welcome', 'Danger-messy room, enter at your own risk' and other sarcastic sayings were plastered all over the paneling. She raised a fist and knocked on the door.

"Yea?"

"It's Gosalyn..." she trailed off, not knowing what else to say. She heard rustling from the other side and stepped back and soon after that, the door opened, revealing Hewy in boxers and a t-shirt, the comic in his hands and a crazy look in his eye. "You're going to love this!" he announced.

_Old Lives Revisited_

The next morning, everyone was awake before 11am, which, for Gosalyn was amazing. However, she wasn't really tired at all; she was simply eager to get out of the house and see Duckburg, which Launchpad had always told her was beautiful either by day or by night.

After eating a lunch of leftovers from last nights meal, the family packed into the two cars, Webby choosing to ride with Gosalyn, and the McDuck and Mallard clan headed into town. When they arrived on Main street, Duckworth let them all out while he found a suitable parking space for the vehicle, and the nephews and Webby set to showing Gosalyn all the sites that Duckburg had to offer. From the _Duckburg Café _to the biggest technology store Calisota had to offer (Tech Central) to Huey's favorite hangout _Comic's, Food, and Games_, Louie's own haunting, _Specialty Sports_, to the mall, which, obviously Webby couldn't live without, it was one full day for the Mallard family. It was also evident that the nephews and Webby didn't need Mr. McDuck by their side for them to be known through out the city. In every shop they went into, they were greeted by the employees and some of the patrons there. It was clear that the McDuck family was well known in Duckburg, and not just for their money.

When they went into an ice cream shop, the woman behind the counter turned around and let out a squeal of delight. "Launchpad McQuack! I didn't know you were back in town!" She came around from the counter and gave Launchpad a kiss on the cheek. "How have you been, you old dog?"

"Ah, I've been around Beatrice...living in St. Canard right now. Uh, this is Drake Mallard, he's my room mate, and this is his daughter Gosalyn." Beatrice shook hands with both of them. "Well, it's very good to meet you both. I say this calls for a celebration," she made her way behind the counter. "What ever you guys want, it's on the house." She grinned at the boys, Hewy especially who loved her ice cream. It was all homemade. "Go ahead Hewy..how many scoops of double fudge caramel chocolate cake do you think you can help yourself to today?"

The answer was six, and soon, Hewy found himself balancing a massive cone topped with not only ice cream, but caramel and fudge syrup, sprinkles, whip cream, and a cherry on top. Unfortunately, he'd forgotten about the hot sun, and the treat already started to melt away once they hit the pavement.

"Oh Hewy, Duckworth's going to strangle you if you get any of that in the car!" Webby exclaimed, happily licking her single serving cookies and cream cone.

"Then I'll just have to finish it before we head back to the house, won't I?"

And Hewy did indeed finish the cone, a bit to quickly though, as he suffered the ice headaches to end all headaches the entire ride back to the mansion. Louie was to busy trying to control his laughter as Dewy was trying to help his brother through the pain, and once the car stopped up at the doors of the mansion and the boys were out, Hewy tackled Louie to the ground. Launchpad stopped the car behind Duckworth and got out, shaking his head and looking at Drake.

"Some things don't change no matter how long you've been gone," he said affectionately. Gosalyn and Webby both got out of the car, Webby yelling at the boys to stop fighting. "You can't have fun at the lake if you've both got black eyes!" she wailed.

Remembering the lake and picnic dinner that they'd planned to have there, the two boys immediately stopped their fighting and looked down at each other. "Chicken in the lake?" Louie challenged. "Done!" Hewy accepted.

"Oh brothers," Dewy muttered, shaking his head as he ran into the house to grab his swimming trunks. "Hey, Dewy, don't forget to leave your laptop at home this time, eh?" Huey raced into the house after his brother, Louie following quickly behind. Webby and Gosalyn trailed them at a more leisurely pace.

In a half hour, they were all gathered on the back deck, Gosalyn and Webby in their bathing suits, the boys in their swimming trunks, and Mrs. Beakley in a more modest swimming uniform that dated all the way back to...well, to when she was younger and the full length body suit was fashionable for women to wear at the time. She held in her hands a massive basket filled with ingredients for sandwiches, along with bowls of egg salad, potato salad, a few bags of chips and each of the lake goers had bottles of water in their hands. They all began to make their way across the yard and to the little path that Webby had pointed out to Gosalyn the previous night. Mr. McDuck still wasn't home from his days errands yet, but when Gosalyn questioned Webby about it, she shrugged it off. "Oh, that's normal for Uncle Scrooge. He came home early yesterday because you guys were getting in, but he went back to the office today to get some work done. He normally does that on Saturday's anyway. Uncle Scrooge is kind of a workaholic."

"Oh yea, I know what you mean," Gosalyn looked behind her at her father.

"So, what does your dad do?"

Gosalyn started. She hadn't really expected that question, but then again, she didn't know why she hadn't. It was a perfectly valid question, and Gosalyn hadn't thought of an answer for it.

"Oh he um, he works with the local police department," Gosalyn said, then, the lightbulb went off in her mind. "I'm not really sure what he does with them, but if he hasn't told me yet and I've been his for seven years, I probably shouldn't talk about it much, you know?"

"Oh yea, no problem. Uncle Scrooge rarely ever talks about his businesses with us. Mostly cause we wouldn't understand them, but he does talk to Dewy a lot. Just between you and me, I think he's trying to groom Dewy to take over after Uncle Scrooge retires...or dies, which ever comes first."

"Well, he does seem to have a knack for computers."

By this time, they'd reached the lake and the girls began spreading out their towels along the sandy coast. The 'lake' was actually a rather large bay, it's sparkling blue waters inching up to the water line. The water was so clear, one could actually see the bottom standing 50 feet out in the bay.

"Webby, this isn't a lake," Gosalyn uttered.

"Well, no, but it's pretty much right in our back yard, so we just call it a lake." She laid down on her towel and put on her sunglasses.

"Hey Gosalyn, we need a fourth for chicken, wanna play?"

"Sure, just give me a second!" Gosalyn straightened out her towel, then, with a wave to her father who was chatting with Launchpad about something or other, ran down to the waters edge and into the bay, splashing water all over Hewy who was trying to get up on Dewy's shoulders. "Hey Gosalyn! Do you think you can hold Louie on your shoulders?"

"Yea, I'm pretty sure. Come on Louie, let's try it, ally oop!"

Louie got up on Gosalyn's shoulders, and though there was some balance checking and hair pulling at first, which didn't make Gosalyn's day that much, though was quickly forgiven, the game of chicken got underway. Huey went down in the first round, Louie in the second, and in the third round, Dewy and Gosalyn became a little mischievous and decided to foil both the brothers plans by leaning back and dunking them severely in the river. This of course, started a water wrestling match, which, some how they were able to drag Webby, Launchpad, and Drake to get into the water and fight as well.

Drake, also being Darkwing Duck, decided to test his daughters skills a little, and when he came up behind Gosalyn totake her in a head lock, he could feel her body panic slightly. She knew her father was doing a bit of training exercise at the moment. She side stepped, keeping her hands on her fathers arm and ducked out of the hold, taking the arm that had been previously holding her hostage and wrapping it behind him. Then, with a huge amount of smugness, she dunked her father forward. When he came up, sputtering and wiping his eyes, she had her arms crossed and the same smug look still laced her features.

"Was that good, Daddy?" she asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes. He only grinned. "Good, but not good enough. Don't hesitate next time."

"Wow, that was so cool!" Hewy waded over to Drake. "Can you show me that move, Mr. Mallard, that was awesome!"

"Oh, I can show you, Hewy, come here," Gosalyn beckoned Hewy over to her. Drake wasn't entirely comfortable with this situation...there was his 15 year old daughter, with her arms around another boy. And there he was, in his swimming trunks, watching it. But then again, this could be another training exercise. By watching her teach Hewy, perhaps he could pinpoint some things that she was doing wrong.

Nope. Nothin' doin'. Gosalyn had the offensive moves down solid. She had them down so solidly that when she and Huey continued to spar, she would increasingly object to letting up.

"Okay, Gosalyn," Drake called, "that's enough, let the poor guy go. Hewy, you've been one heck of a partner for Gosalyn. Most of the other kids in St. Canard try to stay away from that particular hobby of hers. She's always in need of a partner."

"I can see why," Hewy rasped out, holding his throat and looking at the girl with a huge amount of recently earned respect, "where did you learn that?" Gosalyn pointed at her father. "He's trained in Ti Quack Do, and Duck fu...he's got the highest belt you can possibly have in both," Gosalyn explained. "And he's a little over protective of me, so three times a week, he and I have sparring matches and he trains me in both disciplines..."

"Wow..."

"Hey, maybe if you guys want to come visit us in St. Canard, Drake-o here can teach you some of the martial art's stuff!" Launchpad suggested.

"Oh forget waiting, I wanna learn now," Louie jumped out of the water and onto the shore, turning around. "Come Mr. Mallard, why don't you teach us some stuff before dinner?"

"Welllll..." Drake looked at Gosalyn, who shrugged. She didn't care either way. She actually thought it would be rather interesting to watch her father instruct others that weren't going to be taking the career of a super hero. "Alrighty then. If you want to learn a bit of martial art, crab your things and we'll head back up to the house. The yard is perfect for this kinda thing. Gosalyn, you want to come watch?"

"Yea, I'll be up there in a bit, I think I'm just going to sit with Webby for a while."

_Old Lives Revisited_

Gosalyn, Mrs. Beakley, and Webby had stayed near the bay for about a half hour more while the boys went back up to the house to begin their martial arts training. After they were finished basking in the sun, they gathered up all the things and headed back up to the mansion. Gosalyn felt so strange; normally, she would be jumping at the chance to hang out with the boys, but it was kinda cool to be hanging out with Webby too. Maybe it was because their pasts were so similar. Webby was a girly girl, that was sure. She didn't know much about sports, she fawned over every magazine that had a cute guy in it, and she painted her nails everyday to match the color of her outfits, but it didn't matter. Webby had substance to her, which was something that a lot of the girls back in St. Canard lacked, Gosalyn felt. Webby was actually grateful for everything she had. And it was obvious that she loved her uncle and cousins.

When the three ladies made it back up to the yard, they saw Launchpad leaning over the railing of the deck, talking with Mr. McDuck, while Drake was on the ground, his three students in front of them, leading them through what Gosalyn recognized as pre-sparring exercises, ways for the body to get warmed up without breaking a sweat. They made their way up the wooden steps of the porch and greeted Launchpad and Mr. McDuck. Webby gave her uncle a hug and then looked down at Dewy. "How is he doing?" she asked, no one in particular.

"Ah, don't worry m'dear. Dewy's doin' fine. In fact, he seems to have a kind of knack for this bit of sport, aye Launchpad?"

"Oh, yes sir, Mr. McDuck. Gosalyn, you should watch him. It's coming to him like a fish goes to water." Gosalyn raised her eyebrows and walked over to the edge of the railing, watching the three boys and her father. After a few minutes, Gosalyn had to agree with Launchpad. Dewy's movements were fluid,and it was very easy to see that under neath that geeky persona, the boy had some muscle to him. In fact, he reminded Gosalyn of a friend of hers back home. She quickly shook that thought away. Though she missed Honker already, and it had only been a day, she was also having fun, which was exactly what Honker would want her to do.

"I believe I am going to get dinner started," Mrs. Beakley announced. But Mr. McDuck held up a hand. "Ah, I think not, Mrs. Beakley. Our friends have to leave the day after tomorrow, and I have a flight to the capitol tomorrow night. So, I've arranged for a little dinner in town. The reservations are made at Chateau Bianca Chelli for all of us and are for 7pm on the dot. Which means..." he turned and shouted down to the boys and Drake. "Mr. Mallard, I'm sorry for interrupting you, but I've made dinner reservations for 7pm. for everyone."

"Ah, really?" Drake wiped his feathers away from his eyes and placed his hands on his hips. "Alright boys. We can continue this tomorrow right?"

"Sure thing!" Dewy immediately replied, the other two nodding furiously. It seemed as though all three boys had found something that they all enjoyed doing. Mr. McDuck chuckled slightly as he went into the house. That was something new all together.

_Old Lives Revisited_

"Wow..." Gosalyn muttered, stepping out of the car and looking at the outside of the restaurant that Mr. McDuck had decided to eat at that night. "This place is beautiful."

"Well, thank you m'dear. I had it built to years ago, and I named it after a good friend of mine that passed away before it was completed," he offered his arm to both Webby and Gosalyn. "Ladies first, that means you too, Mrs. Beakley."

They all made their way into the softly lit, beautiful atmosphere of the restaurant, and the hostess led them to a table in the far back, an obviously more private are for VIP clients, and of course, the owner should he ever choose to dine there. Gosalyn and Webby were ushered into their seats, followed by Mrs. Beakley, and the boys all took their seats at the same time, Dewy sitting beside Webby, and Gosalyn in between Hewy and Louie. Mr. McDuck, Launchpad, Drake, and Mrs. Beakley all sat on the opposite side of the table.

"This is awfully nice of you, Mr. McD," Launchpad leaned back in his chair and thanked his boss, to which the older man waved him off. "Don' think anything of it, lad. The whole weekend is a celebration, and we don't get to do this often. Plus, I know that Webby has been eager to wear the new dress she's bought recently. It looks lovely on you m'dear, don't you think so, Dewy?"

"Oh...oh yea, sure...you looked great, Webby." It was highly noticeable that both ducklings were blushing. And Mr. McDuck had to admit that it gave him just a little bit of pleasure to see Dewy, who was his most level headed nephew, loose his emotional control so easily.

"And Gosalyn, it was lucky that Webby had something in her closet to fit you, you look very nice as well."

Hewy and Louie didn't wait to compliment her. In fact, their words over lapped each other and Gosalyn just nodded, fingering the skirt that she was wearing. She hated feminine clothing, but she'd put up with it just this once. She was also strangely enjoying the attention she was getting from both brothers.

As the brothers, Webby, and Gosalyn decided what to do on the Mallards and Launchpad's last day in Duckburg, Mr. McDuck flagged down a waiter. After the drink and food orders had been taken, the family settled in to talking about the children, mostly so that Mr. McDuck and Mrs. Beakley could get to know Gosalyn and Drake could get to know the boy sand Webby.

"Now, Gosalyn' m'dear, what is it you like to do back in St. Canard? You're obviously not the kind of lass my Webby is," Scrooge observed, taking a sip of water. "No, Mr. McDuck...I play a lot of sports actually...I'm on the uh, the freshman basketball team and the girls field hockey team at the High School," Gosalyn explained.

"Awesome! I'm the basketball at our high school too!" Louie exclaimed.

"Yea, I'm hoping to make JV next year...if that happens, I'll be the only Sophomore girl on a girls JV team," Gosalyn stated, rubbing her hands together. Webby grinned at her from her seat. "Well, I hope you make it! I'll even come to one of your games if you do!"

"Webby, what are you going to do at a basketball game?" Hewy asked. "You don't even know the rules of basketball!"

"Well, I didn't know the rules of Soccer, but I learned a bit of them last night. And, Gosalyn wasn't the only girl that made you go chasing some balls," Webby sniffed, giving her cousin a smouldering glare. Even Gosalyn felt slightly sorry for him. But then again, she didn't. Webby might have acted and looked like a girly girl, but given some time, and the right company, Webby could quickly become a force to be reckoned with. Not in the same way as Gosalyn, but still...every woman's scorn was different.

Hewy was next, explaining to Gosalyn that he loved comic books and super hero stories, heavy metal music and the latest motorcycle magazines. While the red head paid super attention to the eldest Duck brother, she could positively feel her fathers warning glare on her face. Gosalyn loved everything that Hewy loved...comic books, rock music, fast cars or bikes...Hewy was going to be come the ever apparent bad boy of the family.

Drake was going to ensure that he didn't become Gosalyn's first boyfriend.

Louie was much in the same as Hewy was, except he tended to take a more physical role in life. Sports were definitely at the top of his list, tying trying to get some of the upper Classman girls to date him followed a close second, and he was definitely a part of the social scene, just as Hewy was. Once again, Drake allowed his fatherly expressions to dominate his face. Why couldn't all boys just be like Honker Muddlefoot or Dewy, who liked computers, reading, the classic theatre arts, and studying? Unfortunately for Drake, Dewy already seemed to be quite occupied by another beauty sitting next to him.

During the introduction, their dinner arrived, and for a few moments, there was very little talk at the table, unless it was being done to the person sitting beside the one doing the talking. As much of the dinner was consumed, conversation began again.

No one was certain how it got started. And when anyone tried to remember how the particular subject was broached, no one could, but everyone certainly remembered how the evening ended.

"Super hero's are better than Villains," Gosalyn said stubbornly. Hewy only shook his head. "No way. Villain's get to have more fun, they get to have more lee way, they don't have to worry about breaking all the rules, they get the cool gear-"

"Okay, so dude, what does that make Gizmoduck?" Louie asked, leaning back in his chair and glaring at is brother. Hewy quickly back peddled, "Gizmoduck is out of the realm of super hero, Louie. He's the best of the best."

"Okay, now I really gotta disagree with you there," Gosalyn interrupted, "Darkwing Duck is the best of the best, hands down, no questions asked." She stole a glance at her father, who barely shook his head, indicating for Gosalyn to drop it. Which she would have. Except Hewy opened his mouth. In a very insulting way.

"Oh please, I've seen the news, I've read the papers...Darkwing Duck has gotten in more trouble with the Villain's than he has given it to them, and even the police think that he's some bozo in a purple suit!"

"Hewy," Mr. McDuck's tone brokered no argument for the young duck to quiet down. Launchpad tried to open his mouth, to settle the situation, but Gosalyn beat him to it

"Oh yea, well what about Gizmoduck? He's a guy riding around inon aunicycle! He rusts every time he's on a mission or falls apart and has to be taken to the mechanics!"

"Gosalyn," her father glared at her from across the table, "I know how much Darkwing means to you, but let's show some respect for others that try and do good in this world, shall we?"

The rest of the evening was fine, considering the fact that Hewy and Gosalyn were sitting right next to each other and sending each other heated glares the others way. Drake looked apologetically at Mr. McDuck, but the older man waved it off. "Don' worry about it, Mr. Mallard," he whispered to him, "they're young, and head strong. At least they have something they believe in so strongly. We should be grateful for that." Drake couldn't disagree there and settled back to eating his dinner, occasionally watching Gosalyn and making sure that she wasn't planning to inflict horrible pain upon Hewy. Though, his heart had swelled with pride during and after she had defended him. He definitely had to admit that.

When the dinner was over, the adults, Dewy, Louie, and Webby were happily making their way to their cars, while Hewy and Gosalyn were walking as far away from each other as possible. With the McDuck clan getting into their car and the Mallards and Launchpad hopping into their's, it was only a matter of time before either Hewy or Gosalyn could be heard from outside the window.

"Can you believe _her?_" Hewy raged, balling his fists up, "if she wasn't a girl, I woulda' belted her one right in the mouth!"

"Hewy Duck, control yourself!" Scrooge ordered, fixing his nephew with a piercing glare. "You'd do no such thing, lad, and you know it. Besides, you've scorned a woman. Best be prepared to receive your punishments."

"What woman?" Hewy scathingly asked. Scrooge just smiled in a knowing way. "Trust me, lad. When you grow up, you'll figure out that no matter what race, age, or height, any female will always be a woman."

In the car behind them, Drake and Gosalyn were having a similar conversation. " Dad, he was making fun of you! He was saying that you were stupid and you didn't know what you were doing?"

"Yes, but Gosalyn, you can't insult him back! What if Gizmoduck has done a lot for Huey just like Darkwing did a lot for you?"

"I seriously doubt that, Dad, look where he lives!" Gosalyn folded her arms across her chest stubbornly and raised her chin. "I don't care anyways! If anyone makes fun of you after all you've done for St. Canard, then a tongue lashing is what they get! I...arrgghhh!" A frustrated growl left her lips as she stared out the window, no longer paying attention to what Launchpad or her father was saying to try to calm her down. She didn't want to be calmed down. She wanted Huey's face in front of her so she could punch it!

_Old Lives Revisited_

When the hosts and guests finally arrived home, Hewy and Gosalyn were the first out of their cars, Gosalyn not even bothering to close her door as she stomped up the concrete steps and into the house. She didn't even bother to listen to her father shout her name as she walked in, Hewy right behind her. It was a strange sight actually. They were both infuriatingly angry with each other, but to get to their rooms, they had to go the same way. The both went up the stairs, got off on the third floor and while Hewy went into his room and slammed the door shut behind him, Gosalyn did the exact same thing.

Back in the foyer, Drake, Launchpad, and Mr. McDuck tried to explain Gosalyn's behavior. "Darkwing's helped her out in a couple of spots...in fact, he's the entire reason she's my daughter now...she'd tell you he's the reason she's alive now," Drake tried to explain. "Mr. Mallard...may I call you Drake?"

The young man nodded.

"I have raised the triplets since they were six years old. I've made it a habit not to get into children's quarrels, especially teenagers fights. Both of them will just have to work it out for themselves, though I dare say I hope they do so before tomorrow. But your Gosalyn seems just as spirited as my Hewy so..." Scrooge smiled as he walked up the stairs, "that may be a bit of a problem. Anyway...I have to pack for my business trip tomorrow. It was very nice meeting you and your daughter Mr. Mallard. I hope you know you're welcome here anytime. Launchpad, I assume if I need a pilot, I can always count on you?"

"Yes sirry, Mr. McD," Launchpad answered enthusiastically, "Anytime you need me, you just give me the call. I'll come flying!"

"I know you will, Launchpad. Enjoy the rest of your stay." Mr. McDuck ascended the stairs, soon leaving Launchpad, Drake, and now Mrs. Beakley in the foyer. Louie had gone up stairs to his room, and Dewy and Webby had decided to stay outside for a while to take a walk.

"My, such spirited youngsters," the old woman said, leading the men into the kitchen, "if you'd like discuss it, I'd very much like to know how Gosalyn came into your life, Mr. Mallard. I'll make some tea."

_Old Lives Revisited_

Gosalyn, meanwhile, was devoting all her time to putting on her work out clothes and training her martial arts skills. Walking down the stairs, she passed the kitchen, hearing the voices of her father, Launchpad, and Mrs. Beakley there, and walked through the living room, out the porch door. The deck was spacious, and there was plenty of room to do a single sparring match. She warmed her self up with simple stretches and calisthenics , then, began leading herself through the motions that her father had taught her. A series of punches, kicks, elbow hits, spinning round-house kicks, drop kicks, high kicks, upper cuts, and some moves that were just indiscernible followed one right after the other.

About 20 minutes later, she was in the middle of one of her spinning heel kicks when she heard "watch it!". She narrowly missed Hewy's head as she redirected the angle and stumbled backward, breathing hard and staring at the head she's almost kicked off.

"Geez Louise, I knew you were pissed at me, but I didn't think it was enough to take my head off about it," Hewy exclaimed lightly, keeping a safe distance away from Gosalyn, who was eyeing him warily.

"It's not like I saw you there or anything," she muttered, wiping some hair off her face and glaring at him, "what were you doing coming up behind me like that anyway? You could've really been hurt if I hadn't caught myself in time!"

"What the hell were you doing anyway?" Hewy spun a basketball that he'd been carrying in his hand on his finger. "It was a series of moves that my father's been teaching me. Some of it was what he was teaching you guys earlier today, just with more flash and a lot faster so that if I really were fighting someone, they wouldn't know which part of my body to watch."

"Ah..." Hewy bounced the basketball and regarded Gosalyn quietly as she continued her movements. There was an agreeable silence, al-be-it a tense one, until Huey finally bounced the ball again to get her attention. She looked over at him, slightly annoyed, as she was preparing at that moment to perform a rather complicated movement with her legs.

"Yes?" she asked tersely.

"Let's go for a walk," her host suggested, bouncing the ball to her. "Clear the air, you know?"

After considering his request, Gosalyn bounced the ball back to him and started for the stairs, Hewy allowing her to go first. They trekked over the backyard, quickly finding the path that would lead them to the lake. For the entire walk down, neither of them said a word. They simply enjoyed the cool night air and allowed the tension both of them were feeling to ebb away. Once they reached the lake, Hewy sat down, the ball between his feet and looked up at Gosalyn who was still standing.

"So...you wanna sit down and tell me about Darkwing Duck or...stand?"

Gosalyn contemplated her options. She could just leave, but that wouldn't accomplish anything, and Hewy was really making an effort to clear the air. She could just sit and not say anything, but again, that would simply keep things the way they were between them. Or, she could tell Hewy exactly why she thought Darkwing Duck was better than any super hero out there.

Door number three, in this case, won out.

"Well...," she sat down beside her host and cleared some of the sandy ground from around her, "when I was 9, I got sent to an orphanage after my grandfather, Dr. Waddlemeyer went missing. A really..._really_ bad guy named Taurus Bulba had kidnaped him. Grandpa was working on this piece of technology called the Ramrod. I was never really sure of what it was supposed to do, but Bulba wanted it badly. When Grandpa wouldn't give him the access codes to launch it, he sent his goons to come track me down and take me back with them to Bulba's lab. The first time they tried to get me, Darkwing fought them off and took me back to his hide out with him...but, Bulba eventually figured out how to get me and...he did." She swallowed a lump in her throat and took a breath. She hated talking about this part of her life. Nightmare's always seemed to follow when ever she so much as thought about Taurus Bulba.

"Anyways, yea, he did and my grandfather...well, Bulba decided that he didn't have anymore use for him so, he had him killed." She didn't have to look at Hewy's face to know his jaw had dropped. "But Darkwing still came after me...I was this little 9 year old girl who no one wanted to adopt, had been in and out of trouble, and he didn't even know my name, but he came after me. And when it was all over, he saw to it that I was adopted." She nodded her head with a bit of finality. "He still checks in on me every now and again, but I know he's never far away. He told me once that before me, he didn't have a life worth risking...and now he does."

"Wow, well..." Hewy ran a hand through his hair, "that's kinda tough to beat."

Gosalyn gave him a wane smile. "I'd really worry about you if you could beat it, Hewy."

"No kidding...no wonder you think he's so great. He's saved your life and given you a new one. Not bad...not bad at all."

"So, what about Gizmoduck? What makes him so great to you?"

"Ah, well...Gizmoduck's...well, he's actually a family friend. He's done a lot for Duckburg. He's helped clean up the crime and he keeps a lot of the people that want to ruin my family's life from doing just that. Plus...I kinda know who he is, so...it's a bit personal, you know what I mean?"

Gosalyn only nodded.

"So," Hewy continued, "how bout we shake on it? Gizmoduck and Darkwing Duck are both great in their own ways, and no one will ever top either one in either of our respective hearts." He held out a hand, which Gosalyn promptly shook. For some reason though, neither one of them stopped shaking the other's hand. After about half a minutes of silly looks and glares, Hewy pulled Gosalyn down and began tickling her with the one hand that was not locked in her free hand.

"Wha! What tha-oooooo!" Gosalyn fought back valiantly, but Huey was having none of it. "C'mon, Red, where's all that martial art's training your dad was teaching you?"

That was the spark that Gosalyn needed. With a might surge of energy, she managed to roll Huey over so that she was sitting on him, pinning his arms at his sides. This move generally worked on anyone, and many EMT's used it on those patients that had trouble holding still when they were being stabilized. However, it didn't work on teenage boys who routinely used that move with play fighting with his brothers. Hewy easily flipped her over, using her own momentum against her, and now he pinned her on the ground. Gosalyn wasn't even sure what had happened until she was looking up at Hewy and a star filled Duckburg sky. The mood changed quickly. Until then, she and Hewy had just been two teenagers who barely knew each other getting over their first fight and making up.

Now, 15 year old Gosalyn was experiencing her first kiss underneath a starry sky with one of the richest young ducks on the planet. A brief thought of someone flittered in her mind, but she pushed it away. She had other things on the brain at the moment.

_Old Lives Revisited_

The next morning, Gosalyn awoke incredibly refreshed. After all, she'd had a load of experiences the past couple of days, the most exciting, and slightly guilty of which she'd had last night. "Aw, he'd understand," she grumbled to herself, "he can't expect me to never kiss a guy."

She rose from her bed and padded out of her room and down the stairs, into the kitchen and greeted everyone. A slight blush came to her cheeks as she nodded at Hewy, but she looked away quickly to cover it. Hewy was also feeling the effects of last night, because he quickly got his ever present basketball and called over to Louie to come outside with him for a bit of one on one.

None of this went un noticed by Webby however. After growing up around the boys for 10 years, Webby could tell when something was going on with any one of them. She regarded Gosalyn quietly while finishing her cereal.

"Well, I have some cleaning around the house to do," Mrs. Beakley announced, "Webby, you just let Duckworth know when you're ready to go to the mall. He said it would be a slow day for him, so any time you're ready, he says 'give the word'." Webby giggled. Slow day indeed. Duckworth actually had the day off, as it was Sunday, but even though he was the butler of the house, the man had watched the children grow up around him, and he'd even helped in rearing them. When her grandmother had left, Webby took advantage of the fact that it was only she and Gosalyn in the kitchen.

"So, what happened with you and Hewy last night?"

Gosalyn spit out the cereal she'd been eating. After wiping her mouth, she turned her surprised gaze to Webby. "Wha? What do you mean what happened with me and Hewy?" She swallowed, deciding to play distraction and deception, "you were at dinner. You saw what happened."

"No, no, no," Webby deflected coyly, "I meant what happened after dinner? You know, when you went out on the porch and Hewy went to go play basketball and both of you guys didn't come back until...well, you came back pretty late." Webby put her bowl and spoon into the sink and finished her orange juice, grinning at Gosalyn. "C'mon, tell me, what happened? Did you _make up?_" Gosalyn's blush returned with new vigor.

"Or did you _make out?_"

"Alright, okay, okay, okay!" Gosalyn held her hands up in defeat. "I admit it, okay? We went down by the lake, said our sorry's and explained our positions, and then he started tickling me and one thing led to another and..." she made gestures with her hands and head, "and there you have it." Webby wasted no time in squealing with delight. "You know what? You should come to the mall with me! We'll be back in plenty of time for the boys to do something with you, but we could do some shopping...and they really do have an excellent sporting center in there."

"Well..." Gosalyn shrugged her shoulders. It was obvious that Louie and Hewy were going to be busy for a while. Then they'd probably eat lunch and wouldn't be ready to do anything else until about an hour after that. "Sure, why not?"

"Great. Go ask you dad for some money for lunch, and I'll be outside with the car!"

Drake, though clearly surprised that his daughter was going to a mall without a fight, readily lent her $20 for lunch and wished her a good time. He couldn't understand what all the fuss was about though. When Gosalyn had come to him, she had the tint of red on her cheeks. Being an over-protective father, he asked her if she felt alright, that her cheeks were red. Gosalyn had quickly covered them up, shaking her head and spouting something about running all the way from the kitchen to porch to get to him.

The kitchen was just on the other side of the living room, which was where the deck opened into. Drake looked warily at his daughter, very aware that she was concealing something, but didn't think much on it. It wasn't in the category of national emergency, so he let it go, gave her the $20 bill, and wished her a good time.

After quickly getting into the car and having a spirited conversation with Duckworth on the way, Webby and Gosalyn were soon walking around Duckburg City Galleria, a huge shopping center with four floors, the first of which being the food court. Even Gosalyn was impressed. They had malls in St. Canard, but the biggest one only had three floors, and the food court was located on the top tear. While many of the other patrons complained about it, Gosalyn didn't mind. It was more exercise up and down to get the food.

They walked around for the first two hours, Webby showing her where the video game stores were, and Gosalyn even walked into the Duckette Secret store. She never would have been caught dead back in one of these in St. Canard, but Webby had wanted to by some new underwear and show her that not everything the store sold was considered scandalous, as Gosalyn had assumed. Webby actually bought some pretty normal looking underwear, though it was a bit more feminine than Gosalyn would have allowed for herself. It had butterfly's on it, for crying out loud.

When they'd finally hit all the spots that were on their list, the girls sat down to lunch around 12:30, Webby with a sushi plate and white rice with oolong, and Gosalyn with a classic cheeseburger and fries.

"So, what exactly is going on with you and Dewy?" Gosalyn asked between bites. It was now Webby's turn to look sheepish. "Oh that? I...I don't know really, I mean, I like him, but..." she shrugged, adding some wasabi sauce to her sushi, "I'm not sure how he feels about me, you know?" Gosalyn snorted.

"Are you blind?" She leaned back and regarded her new friend easily, "Dewy likes you, of course he likes you, he's just so shy he doesn't wanna say anything."

"I guess," Webby uttered, taking a bite of sushi. Gosalyn scrunched up her nose. "How can eat that stuff?" The girl across from her raised her eyebrows. "Sushi?" Gosalyn nodded. "It's raw fish."

"Yea, but it's really good. It's healthy too, healthier than eating a dead cow!"

"Yea, but not tastier." Gosalyn took a huge bite of her burger and grinned. Webby just shook her head, muttering something about cardiac arrest at the age of 18.

_Old Lives Revisited_

When the girls got back, the boys were ready to take them about town, leaving Launchpad, Drake, and Mrs. Beakley alone at the house to do as they wished. Drake experienced some apprehension about not going with them, but Mrs. Beakley assured him that the boys knew the town very well, and that Gosalyn would be left in their very capable hands.

The first stop was the comic book store Hewy had been telling Gosalyn about. With the money that had been left over from lunch, Gosalyn bought the very same comic book that Hewy had lent to her on the first night she arrived. She noticed a slightly pouty look on Hewy's face, but when she asked him about it, he simply shrugged it off and replaced it with a smile, telling her absolutely nothing was wrong. The next stop was the sports store Louie had been telling her about, and Gosalyn was floored as she entered the building. Rows upon rows upon _rows_ were full of all different kinds of sports balls form all different kinds of companies and manufacturers. As they continued to walk through the two story sports facility, all sorts of gym equipment and bicycle equipment came into view, as well as secondary sports equipment such as golf clubs, basketball nets, soccer nets to set up, tennis racquets...anything and everything that anyone could ever thing of, this place had. It even had a sports clothes and shoes area, with shoes for any sport; running, track, even wet shoes for those that swam.

"This place is great," Gosalyn muttered as she walked along beside Louie, who was showing her around. Hewy, Dewy, and Webby were knocking around in the soccer section...or rather, Hewy was. Webby and Dewy were trying to ensure that he didn't kick the soccer ball into anything and break the item.

The five teens spent the better part of an hour in the store, looking around, making notes of things that they'd save their money for, and each showing the others the one thing from the store that they really wanted. By the time they left, it was nearly 5pm, and time to head home for dinner. The car ride home was still lively, but there was the somber tone of parting in the air. This would the Mallards and Launchpad's last night in Duckburg, and though no one in the car was extremely happy about it, they weren't about to let that fact end the fun on their last night together.

Dinner was a rather loud affair. Lots of jokes, stories of the kids day, and talk of the McDuck clan possibly coming to visit the Mallards in St. Canard were all hot topics of discussion at the dinner table. Drake wasn't particularly fond of the choice of the comic book Gosalyn had chosen, but he let it slide. After all, he hadn't asked for the change back after her lunch at the mall.

"Oh, you know what we should do?" Webby announced as they all helped clear the table, "we should run out to the store and get some night snacks and stay up watching movies, that would be fun!"

"Oh, heck yea! Guys, there's this move that just came out that I wanna pick up anyways," Hewy leapt to the occasion, racing up stairs to get the money he'd saved just for this movie. When he came back downstairs, he also had a comic book with him and gave it to Louie and Gosalyn to look over. "_Attack of Killer Marsians!_ They made the comic book only two years ago and it's already a movie!"

"Oh, cool beans! I didn't even know it had come out," Gosalyn exclaimed looking over Louie's shoulder at the comic book. "I hope the art's as good in the movie as it is in the comics." Louie nodded his head in agreement. "And hopefully it follows the comic and doesn't go all off the plot and stuff like that."

They finished clearing off the table, then each got on their shoes and were out the door. "Instead of bothering Duckworth, why don't we just walk? The super markets right down the street, and we could use the exercise," Dewy suggested. It didn't go unnoticed by either his two brothers or Gosalyn that he was, at that very moment, holding Webby's hand...though slightly discreetly, he was still doing it. The poor guy probably didn't want to get interrogated later.

Five teenagers made their way down the long drive way, each counting the money that they had left over. Gosalyn had a little over $10, Webby had about the same amount, and between the brothers, they had $50. So, that was $70 worth of junk food and movies the teens could buy and rent to keep their brains awake and ready through the night.

_Old Lives Revisited_

"Oh, man! He should have known that was coming!" Gosalyn announced, covering her eyes with her hand and shaking her head. "Why do the wanna be hero's always wanna be so stupid?"

"Cause that's the way they're born," Hewy answered, looking down at her from his perch on the couch. "It's like a prerequisite...foolhardy and stubborn are on the top five for being a hero." Gosalyn raised her eyebrows and turned around. "Really? What are the other three?"

"Good looking, suave, and able to handle pressure."

"Hmmm...well, at least you have the first two down."

Hewy's brothers grinned and laughed uproariously at the comment, while Webby gave Gosalyn a high five. Hewy simply took the joke in stride, nodding his head, a smirk on his face. "That's alright, Red. You fit the bill of a sidekick pretty well." Gosalyn looked at him, waiting for his remarks.

"Sidekicks should be girls, flighty, and damsels in distress at all times."

"Oh, okay, name me one female sidekick that's like that!" she challenged. Hewy just pointed at her. "Okay, and who's sidekick am I?" Huey pointed at himself. Gosalyn sniffed. "I thought we already established that you only fit the bill on two of the requirements?" Hewy shook his head. "Nope, you did. Besides, Duckburg knows better." He leaned his head back with his hands behind it and watched the red head turn back around, shaking her head, a look on her face which promised, at some point in the future, an equitable dose of retribution.

They finished watching the movie that Hewy had actually bought and popped in the movie that Dewy had rented. Though he was different from his brothers in many ways, movies were something that all three boys could get together on, no problem. This was the classic movie that all three Duck brothers had watched since they were little. Their uncle was a great watcher of the classics, and had ensured that, while his newphew's would surely be influenced with the movies, music, and entertainment of the present day, they would know and understand where the entertainment of today came from.

"God, this guy is so great," Louie said from the recliner, "I swear if I wasn't into sports so much, I'd go be an actor just like him." Gosalyn was the only one in the room who didn't know what the movie was, and so she turned around and asked him. "Oh, come up here, you're in for a treat. You can't watch this movie sitting on the floor." Gosalyn hopped up and settled herself on the couch, her head resting on Hewy's shoulder.

As was tradition, the distribution company's logo came on the screen, and shortly after that, _Carrotblanca_, one of the best movies ever produced and boasting one of the greatest actors to have lived, Bugs Bunny, was now showing on the screen.

_Old Lives Revisited_

When Drake and Launchpad came down the stairs with their bags, they were slightly surprised to see Gosalyn, the boys, and Webby asleep in the living room. Hewy and Gosalyn had taken the couch, which worried Drake to no end, but he kept his beak shut, Webby and Dewy had taken the love seat sized chair, and Louie was twisted around in the recliner.

"Wow. Looks like the kids had a bit of a party down here last night," his side kick observed, looking around the room at the soda cans, open bags of chips, popcorn bowls, and more than a few packages of chocolate and other assorted candies littered the room. Drake stepped over the pseudo feast his daughter and the others had enjoyed and stood in front of her as she still dozed on the couch. "Gosalyn," he started off softly, shaking her shoulder. His only response was a wrinkled brow. "Gosalyn, it's time to get up. We've got to leave soon." Gosalyn turned away from him, which Drake wouldn't have been so upset about, except for the fact that she turned further into Hewy's chest. Drake bit back his temper and held his beak to her ear.

"Gosalyn, Negaduck has Darkwing as a hostage!"

That did the trick. Gosalyn bolted up and off the couch, her heart beating a mile a minute and her eyes wild with fright. She did a great job at scaring the hell out of Hewy too, who sat up, wondering where the warmth had gone and why Gosalyn was standing up in such a state of panic. And then came the yelling, which woke up everyone.

"What did you think you were doing!" She raved, walking up to her father and punching him as hard as she could in the arm. Which was pretty hard. "Do you have any idea how much it scares me when you do that!"

"Sorry, Gosalyn, but that was the only way you were going to wake up, it seemed. After all, you were sleeping pretty soundly," Drake caught her fist on her second fly by and gestured toward the couch, where a sheepish Hewy still sat, watching the confrontation. Gosalyn got the hint and had the decency to look a bit guilty. "We just fell asleep dad, nothing to worry about," she defended, not wanting this to turn into an argument in front of everyone. She took a look at her surroundings, but the most poignant thing about her environment was the bright sun light shining through the window.

It was Monday morning. She had to leave today.

"You should go upstairs and pack your things up," Drake prodded her, patting her on the back, "but not before you help them clean this place up." At that, Gosalyn, without a fight, started to pick up the mess in the living room, the rest of the Ducks, at which point were all awake now, began to help her in silence. At least this way she could stay a little longer.

After the living room was spotless, Gosalyn ran upstairs to her guestroom and threw all her things into her suitcase. After she was finished taking a shower, brushing her teeth, and getting dressed, she grabbed her luggage and headed downstairs, where she found her father, Launchpad, and McDuck clan waiting for her. Webby was the first one to hug her good bye. "I really hope we get to see you soon. Maybe we can visit you in St. Canard sometime?"

"I'd really like that, Webby," Gosalyn answered, hugging Dewy and Louie good bye as she spoke. "You guys are definitely invited to my 16th part though."

"Party?" Drake cleared his throat. "What party?"

"Da-ad," Gosalyn glared at her father, "I'm gonna be 16! Don't you think I should have a party to ring in the year where I'll start to be seen as a woman?"

"I don't think we should ring in _any _where you'll be seen as a woman," Drake muttered, but quickly came back with, "of course we'll have a party for you, Gos. 16 is a big age..." it was obvious to anyone in the room though that he wasn't happy about his little girl growing up.

When Gosalyn turned her attention back to Hewy, it was slightly awkward, but it was quickly over come by Hewy giving Gosalyn a warm hug and whispering in her ear, "I'll come visit you!"

"You better," she returned, grinning at him. Once again, that nagging thought that had come to her when she'd kissed Hewy returned, but she quickly pushed it away. He lived in Duckburg, she lived in St. Canard. He had absolutely nothing to worry about. She glanced at her father. "Well, we'll be waiting out in the car while you guys say bye to Launchpad."

"Are you kidding? We're following you guys out there," Webby said, grabbing hold of Launchpad's hand. "Do you really have to go Launchpad, you can't just stay a couple more days?" she continued as they walked out and down the steps to the awaiting car that Duckworth had driven around for them.

"Sorry kiddo, no can do. Drake and I have work back in St. Canard. They paper works probably piled up something fierce just with these two days," he said, giving her a hug. The boys crowded around Launchpad, each giving him a handshake and a hug. When it was Hewy's turn, he beckoned Launchpad a little closer. "You don't think Gosalyn's dad is planning on coming back and killing me do you?"

"What, because you and Gos were on the same couch?" Hewy nodded. "Nah...but he is the protective type of her. But I think he knows you're a good kid. Besides, it's not like he found you in some strange position or anything, right?" Hewy shook his head, and Launchpad grinned. "They you're fine."

"Well, everyone going to St. Canard, in the car. This rides leaving in 30 seconds!" Launchpad got behind the wheel and shut the door, waving to the kids. Drake got in the car, and was quickly followed by Gosalyn. In no time, they were waving to the small clan as they traveled down the doorway. The gates opened up onto the main road and Drake, Launchpad, and Gosalyn were on their way home.

"So, Gos...wanna talk about anything?" Her father asked after a few minutes. She shook her head, looking away from his reflection in the mirror. "You sure?" She nodded this time, and he let it drop. He remembered what it was like to be a teenager, contrary to Gosalyn's at least once a day accusation that he didn't know anything about being young.

"What are you planning on doing when we get home?" He asked. "Cleaning your room is on there somewhere, I hope."

"Huh? Oh yea...yea, I'll clean it, probably tonight. Hey dad, would it be okay if I got Honker over for the night?" She rarely ever had to ask if Honker could spend the night. Drake loved Honker, could never thank him enough for being by Gosalyn's side and making sure that she didn't get into to much trouble. "Sure. Just clean the room before anything, hmmm? You know I can't stand a mess."

"Hey, DW, will we be at the tower tonight?"

"Oh yes. Yes, yes, yes, there will be a lot to catch up on. S.H.U.S.H. will want to know where I've been and I need to make sure that no one's reared their ugly heads. Things are just so peaceful...they have been for the past month. No F.O.W.L. or Bushroot, Megavault...hell, I don't even feel the Liquidator on the radio or television anymore, nothing resembling his voice. It's just been too quiet. I've got the feeling something's gonna happen, LP. Maybe not tonight or tomorrow night...maybe not next week or next month, but something's being planned...I feel it."

Gosalyn sat in the back, half listening to her father and LP's conversation, half lost in her own thoughts. It's Honker...he won't be mad...maybe I won't even tell him...no, of course I'll tell him, I tell Honker everything...okay, maybe not everything, but it's _Honker!_ It doesn't matter, it's not like he'll care or anything...why the hell am I even caring about this? So I had my first kiss, what is he going to do? Huff and puff and scream and shout? No, he's Honker, he'll say, "wow, that's great Gos, I'm happy for you" and I'll tell him who it was with and all that nonsense...it'll be fine.

She stared out the window as she left Duckburg behind.

It'll be fine.


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own the following characters:

Drake Mallard a.k.a. Darkwing Duck

Gosalyn Mallard a.k.a. Quiverwing Quack

Honker Muddlefoot

Launchpad

Huey Duck

Louie Duck

Dewy Duck

Webbagail Vanderquack

Mrs. Beakley

Scrooge McDuck

Duckworth

This is the forth in a series of I don't know how many fictions about Darkwing Duck. I've been on a kick lately, and decided to put out some DW fics. These fics don't need to be read in any particular order, but they do tie into one another, so if you feel like reading all of them, go ahead, and you'll get back ground information on some of the events and issues that are written about in each story. I don't believe this to by my last fic, I have an idea for at least two more which I will begin ASAP.

There is one mistake though that I have caught. It is a bit of a spoiler however in what does happen, so if you wish to not read it, then stop reading...NOW.

In _We Can't Go Home_, Gosalyn makes mention of her water speeder that she got for her 17th birthday. I actually had her receive it as her sweet 16 present. Just a small mistake but it was driving me up a wall, so there you go. I hope you enjoy the fics and if you'd like, go ahead and look through my archive. I've got 20 more you can read.

Enjoy, and thank you again.


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